What is the role of a project manager or lead carpenter?

Q:

What is the role of a project manager or lead carpenter?

A:

 A project manager or lead carpenter is the person in charge of managing the day-to-day activity and the progress on the job site during construction. Their duties usually involve ordering materials, scheduling trade partners, and serving as the homeowner’s one point of contact throughout the project.

They are also in-charge of the order in which things happen on the site. For example;

The mechanical installers will always be scheduled before the electricians, this is because the mechanical installers have less flexibility with where there ductwork is suppose to be installed then the electricians who are installing wires that will bend and turn around obstacles. If this is organized in reverse then there is a chance that the design of the ducting system will have to be compromised or electrical wires will be forced to be reworked. Both these scenario’s cost you the homeowner money.

In large projects there could be a project manager and a lead carpenter, one to make sure that the work is progressing everyday at a high quality and another to be the point of communication for the homeowner and the material ordering.

The larger the project the more organization is needed on and around the jobsite. These two are essential to how a job site flows.

Rob Abbott
Village Builders Inc.